External Directory Anchor Objects for Direct Content Synchronization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Content management systems do not offer synchronization of content items stored on an external drive attached to a client device, which poses challenges due to accessibility issues, format differences, and limited storage space on the client computer.
Innovation Solution
The system allows synchronization of external directories, including external hard drives, by using an anchor object with special attributes that enables direct synchronization without initial storage on the client device, leveraging client and server synchronization services to manage and track changes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If content items are synchronized from external drives to content management systems, then synchronization capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary component that bridges the external drive and the content management system. This intermediary handles the complexity of external drive integration, format conversion, and accessibility management, allowing the content management system to synchronize content without directly dealing with the complexities of external drive protocols and formats.
Solution Approach 2:
The synchronization system is divided into separate functional modules: an external drive detection module, a format conversion module, a synchronization coordination module, and a content management module. This segmentation allows each component to handle specific aspects of the synchronization process independently, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining comprehensive functionality.
2Quantity of substance
If content items are stored on external drives, then storage capacity is improved, but accessibility deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs an intermediary service that monitors the external drive for changes and automatically manages content synchronization. This intermediary handles accessibility issues by providing a standardized interface that translates between different external drive formats and the content management system's requirements, making content from external drives as accessible as locally stored content.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-configuring synchronization rules and formats before content is added to the external drive. It establishes communication protocols and data structures in advance, so when content is added to the external drive, the synchronization process can begin immediately without accessibility delays or format conversion issues.
3Reliability
If content items are copied to client device before synchronization, then synchronization reliability is improved, but storage space consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of copying the entire content to the client device before synchronization, the system creates selective copies or references of only the specific content items that need to be synchronized. The intermediary service maintains metadata pointers to the external drive locations, allowing the system to verify and synchronize content without requiring full local storage copies, thus maintaining reliability while reducing storage consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
The present technology pertains to synchronizing contents of a directory external to a synchronized directory by a content management system. The content management system is configured to synchronize only objects in the synchronized directory. Accordingly, the present technology creates an anchor object that represents the directory external to the synchronized directory within the synchronized directory. The anchor object includes special attributes that indicate to the synchronization client that the anchor object represents an external directory, and allows the contents of that directory to be synchronized directly to a server on the content management system without first storing the contents of the external directory on the hard drive of the client device.